Unable to Stay, Unable to Leave (Formerly Cal's Thoughts)
by glitterstar7
Summary: A short story on Cal's thoughts before and after Rose jumps from the lifeboat to be with Jack. I also decided to add Jack and Rose's thoughts on this scene.
1. Chapter 1

Cal was relieved that Rose was in the lifeboat…his lie that he could get him and Jack off the ship safely worked perfectly. He was grateful that Jack went along with it, or otherwise Rose would have never gotten into the lifeboat. All he had to do was wait until Rose was safely off and then head to his own lifeboat, and leave the gutter rat to his own devices. He looked at Jack, who happened to have his eyes on Rose. He could see that Jack truly loved Rose, and could see that he was relieved that she was safe. Cal turned and saw that Rose wasn't looking at him…she had her eyes full of love staring at Jack. Cal couldn't believe it… Rose had never looked at him that way. But it was obvious that Rose had fallen in love with Jack. That was certain, and it broke his heart because he also loved Rose. He comforted himself with the notion that once he was in the lifeboat, he would survive and Jack wouldn't. Rose would have no choice but to marry him then.

Suddenly he saw Rose jump off the lifeboat, and back onto the ship. He couldn't believe it! Jack couldn't either…and both of them were calling out for someone to stop her! Once Rose had made it safely back on the ship, Jack took off running after her! He ran after Jack, and he could hear Lovejoy following him. Cal knew the route that Jack had taken would lead him to the Grand Staircase…and sure enough there was Rose safe in Jack's arms. He could hear Jack asking Rose why she jumped back onto the ship, and then saw Jack kissing her. He could hear Rose saying she couldn't go without him….she wasn't going to leave unless she knew that Jack was safe!

Cal was numb….he knew that Rose had fallen in love with Jack. But to witness it being confirmed and seeing her kiss Jack was like a dagger to his heart. Hadn't he done everything to show that he loved her?! She barely knew Jack, and here she was declaring her love for him. Jack had no money to his name, but she didn't care! It was obvious the way that Jack was holding Rose that they had been lovers! How could they not have been, with that scandalous drawing that Rose left in his safe! Lovejoy was trying to lead him away to safety, but a rage burned in his soul! If he couldn't have the woman he loved, he wasn't about to let her go off with that gutter rat! He was going to make them pay dearly! He grabbed Lovejoy's pistol out of his jacket, and ran toward the two lovers!

Right as he fired, Jack looked up…his eyes wide with fear! Jack quickly grabbed Rose's hand in a mad dash to get away from him! Cal wasn't about to let them get away, and chased them down the stairwell, until he ran out of ammunition and they were running into the flooding dining saloon. He landed into the cold water, and in frustration threw away the empty pistol. He hollered after them, "I hope you enjoy your time together!" He decided to cut his losses, and make his way back up to the boat deck. Suddenly he remembered he put his coat on Rose, and began to laugh at his stupidity. Lovejoy had found him and asked, "What could possibly be so funny?" Cal admitted that he put the diamond into his coat pocket, and he put the coat on Rose! Well, he could always get the insurance money on the diamond later. But if by some miracle Rose survived, he would get his fiancé and his prized possession back!


	2. Chapter 2

All pretenses dropped between the two men once Rose was safely in the lifeboat. Cal turned and said to Jack, "You're a damn good liar" to which he replied, "Almost as good as you. There's no arrangement…is there?" Cal smugly replied, "Oh there is. Not that you'll benefit from it. I always win Jack… one way or another." Jack couldn't believe Cal's deviousness, but somehow he knew that Cal wouldn't help him. Cal already proved his cruelty when he framed him for the supposed theft. The only reason why he went along with Cal's lie was so Rose would safely get off the ship. He knew that Rose did not want to leave him, but he wasn't going to let her face certain death. He wanted the woman he loved to have a fighting chance, even at the expense of his own life. As long as she was safe, he didn't really care what happened to him.

As the lifeboat was being lowered away, Jack noticed that Rose was looking at him. In that moment, he could see it in her eyes that Rose truly loved him. Well, if he had to die that night, at least he knew that Rose loved him just as much as he loved her. Holding back tears, he let his eyes show all the love he had for her. He didn't care that Cal was staring at him…he was going to stay strong for Rose. Maybe his strength could give Rose the courage to survive…after all he wasn't planning on giving up just yet. He meant what he said…he was a survivor and wasn't going to die without a fight.

Suddenly Rose jumped from the lifeboat….Jack heard himself saying, "Rose! What are you doing?!" Cal was shocked too, and hollering for someone to stop her. Once Rose was safely onboard, Jack took off running after her. After a few seconds, he found her at the Grand Staircase. She leaped into his arms, and he had never been so frustrated or so happy to see someone! He leaned towards her to kiss her and to get after her for being so stupid! When he asked her why she did something so stupid, she only replied, "You jump, I jump!" He could only smile and reply that she was right. Rose continued to say that she couldn't go without him, and he reassured her that they would figure something out together.

As Jack held his sobbing Rose, he happened to look up only to see a jealous and enraged Cal with a pistol pointed right at them. Jack grabbed Rose's hand and began to run just as Cal fired, and the bullet narrowly missed the both of them. Cal continued to fire and chase them down the stairwell, until finally he chased them into the flooding dining saloon. The moment that they ran into the cold water, Cal had finally ran out of bullets. Jack could hear Cal hollering after them, "I hope you enjoy your time together!" Jack and Rose kept running though….even though Cal may have ran out of bullets they were not out of danger yet. They were now in the depths of the sinking ship, but Jack was determined to get Rose out danger one way or another.


	3. Chapter 3

When Rose realized that she would be the only one allowed on the lifeboat, it made her sick. She saw those little girls crying pitifully for their father to join them, and the father was trying to comfort his daughters lying that he would get on the next boat. Hearing that, she told Jack she couldn't leave him! How could she? She loved him… she didn't want to leave the ship unless she knew the man she loved was safe too. Jack insisted that she get on the boat, and to their greatest surprise Cal turned up. Cal also insisted that she get into the lifeboat, and even made a pitiful attempt of affection by taking off his coat and putting it on her. She flinched at Cal's touch….she did not want him touching her. The only man that she wanted touching her was Jack.

Jack kept insisting that she should get on the lifeboat, but she persisted by saying, "Not without you!" Cal then mentioned that he had an arrangement with an officer on the other side of the ship, and that he could get both him and Jack off safely. Jack turned to her and said, "See, I got my own lifeboat to catch." She turned and looked at both men…she was skeptical that Cal would actually help Jack. But she reluctantly allowed herself to be pulled into the lifeboat…she held onto Jack's hand as long as she could until the lifeboat began to lower away.

As the lifeboat was lowered, she could see both men standing side by side and they exchanged words. Something was up, because she thought she saw Jack tense up. Both men turned toward the lifeboat, but there was only one man that Rose was looking at. The distress rockets illuminated the night sky, and the light seemed to focus on Jack. She couldn't take her eyes off of him…the man that she loved with all her heart. She could see it in Jack's eyes how difficult it was for him to let her go… in that moment she knew that Jack truly loved her. She knew her eyes were showing how much she loved him too. She realized she should have never gotten onto the boat without him. With that she leaped from the lifeboat and back onto the ship!

She could hear the gasps and the voices of Jack and Cal calling out for someone to stop her! Once she was safe, she ran as fast as she could. She found Jack at the Grand Staircase, and she leaped into his arms! Jack held her, and kissed her. She never felt safer than being in his arms… he got after her for being so stupid. He asked why she did it, and she could only say, "You jump, I jump, right?" Jack gave her the warmest smile and agreed with her. She insisted that she couldn't go without him, and he tried to reassure her that they would figure something out together. She had no idea that Cal was watching them.

Suddenly she saw Jack's eyes go wide with fear! He grabbed her hand and forced her to run, and she heard a gunshot go off. She screamed, and turned to see Cal chasing after them with a pistol in his hand! Jack did not let go of her hand, and they kept running. She had turned to see that Cal was still chasing them, and continued firing his gun at them. She had never been so scared, and they continued to run down the stairwell and ran into the flooding dining saloon. Jack kept pushing her to run, but Cal must have run out of bullets since she didn't hear any more gunshots. She heard Cal hollering "I hope you enjoy your time together!" Rose had never been more scared in her life than in that moment, but she knew that they were still in danger as they were now back in the depths of the sinking ship. But as long as she was with Jack, she was going to fight to survive.

Note: I thought that I was completely done with this, when I realized that I didn't get Rose's point of view. I was surprised how easy it was to write from Cal's point of view...he's not one of my favorite characters of the movie. But I could see that he was heartbroken that Rose chose Jack over him. That is what inspired me to write this story. Jack was a little bit more difficult to write, since he's such a beloved character. I hope that I did him justice. I saw the movie again over the weekend, and I felt I just had to write how Rose felt since she is such a major part of the story. I hope everyone enjoys and that I did the characters justice.


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